Man dies after 250-foot fall in Eldorado Canyon

A 41-year-old man died Friday afternoon after plunging an estimated 250 feet from the top of a rock formation popular with climbers in Eldorado Canyon State Park, according to authorities.

Boulder County emergency dispatchers began receiving reports about the fatal fall at 5:25 p.m., officials say.

Boulder County Sheriff's Sgt. Lori Cox said deputies arrived on the scene to find the body in the roadway. It appears the man, described only as a white male, born in April 1971, fell 250 feet from the top of the Bastille rock formation, Cox said.

He was not wearing climbing gear when his body was found, according to Cox.

David Applehans, 26, of Lafayette, said he was wrapping up a day of climbing in the park Friday when he witnessed the man fall. He did not want to speculate on what caused the fall, but he noted the man was alone and did not scream when he went over the edge of the rock formation.

Applehans said his climbing partner Friday was a paramedic who was the first one to call 911 after they witnessed the man fall.

"We were the second group on the scene," Applehans said. "It was obvious when we arrived that nothing could be done to help him."

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